Shuka Sho (G1) - Preview

Stellenbosch

Cervinia

Queen’s Walk

Bond Girl

Christmas Parade

Mi Anhelo

Koganeno Sora

Sekitoba East

The big action moves from Nakayama to Kyoto Racecourse, with the spotlight on the 3-year-old fillies in the Grade 1 Shuka Sho this Sunday. A 2,000-meter turf event, the Shuka Sho wraps up the three races that comprise Japan’s Triple Crown for fillies.

This year marks the Shuka Sho’s 29th running with the race boasting a purse of nearly JPY239 million and carrying a first-place prize of JPY110 million. Seventeen 3-year-olds have been nominated for the 18 berths of the big event. All runners will carry 55kg.

Unlike the last two years, when a Shuka Sho victory held the key to the filly’s Triple Crown, the first two filly Classics were split this year. The Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas) laurels went to Stellenbosch, and Cervinia claimed the Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks). The pair, both returning from five-month layoffs.

The Shuka Sho is held over Kyoto’s 2,000-meter inner A course. The race starts on an upward slope before the grandstand and from the backstretch the track is relatively flat. The field picks up speed as the track dips around the bend. Into the straight, it only rises gently, making for a far less grueling test than many of the other venues.

Post time is 15:40 local time for the Shuka Sho, Kyoto’s 11th race on a card of 12.

Here’s a look at the expected popular picks:

Stellenbosch: This daughter of Epiphaneia, slight though she is, is a force to be reckoned with. From her six career starts with three of them at top-level, Stellenbosch, fielded by the Miho-based trainer Sakae Kunieda, has never finished further back than second place. She has recorded three wins and three seconds so far, and even more laudable is the fact that the three races she has won have been those where she either broke a bit late or encountered interference under way. This will be her first time at Kyoto, but she is a seasoned traveler, having raced at both Hanshin (twice) and Sapporo. More importantly, she has already been training at Ritto (as she did prior to the Oka Sho) ahead of Sunday’s race. Though Stellenbosch’s three wins have been over distances from 1,600 to 1,800 meters, her second-place finish in the Oaks (an admirable performance even though she’d lost a shoe) indicates the Shuka Sho distance shouldn’t pose a problem. Kunieda says all systems are go. “Last week, she worked hard up the hill course despite the bad going. Mentally, she is calmer, and physically she has filled out. We’ll just have to see how she handles the inner course at Kyoto.”

Cervinia: By Harbinger with a tendency to be a beat or two slow at the break, Cervinia has gotten splendid results in all but one of her five starts thus far, and the one blemish on her record was the Oka Sho. In the race, Cervinia ran strongly after breaking from the far outside gate, but was blocked in the stretch and unable to get a clear run, resulting in her finishing 13th of 18. Not a reflection of her ability, her poor results were due more to the high pace, poor trip, and the fact that she was returning after over five months off. It spotlighted just how gutsy this girl is. The next month, still with only a Grade 3 win to her name, she topped the field of the Oaks. Yu Ota, assistant to trainer Tetsuya Kimura, said, “Just before returning to the training center, she had been feeling a bit off, but once back at (Miho) she’s been improving every day and has handled long fast work for three weeks in a row. Her balance and breathing are good. If she can break well, she’ll travel just fine.

Queen’s Walk: Unlike Stellenbosch and Cervinia, Queen’s Walk heads into the Shuka Sho prepped with a win in the Grade 2 Rose Stakes at Chukyo last month. It was a win that saw her beat Regaleira, a filly that had run fifth in the Tokyo Yushun (Japanese Derby). With only one previous Grade 3 win (the Queen Cup over 1,600 meters at Tokyo), the Rose Stakes win over 2,000 meters is expected to put this filly right back up there in the popularity polls with Cervinia and Stellenbosch. With the rain-affected ground and slow pace of the Rose Stakes, Queen’s Walk wanted to move, but listened to rider Yuga Kawada and waited for the final stage to unleash what she had and win by a length and a half. Eighth in the Oka Sho and fourth in the Oaks, Queen’s Walk has demonstrated she can handle the distance. Though both her graded wins have been over lefthanded tracks, the Kizuna-sired filly has posted a first at Hanshin and debuted at Kyoto with a second-place finish over 1,800 meters. If Queen’s Walk is anything like her half-brother Grenadier Guards, winner of the Grade 1 Asahi Hai Futurity Stakes in 2020, she’ll be exhibiting new maturity just about now. Last year, trainer Mitsumasa Nakauchida and jockey Yuga Kawada paired up to bring Liberty Island to the Shuka Sho winner’s circle, and this year the pair may prove winning again. “The inner Kyoto course isn’t easy, but I’m expecting her to not only close the gap with the top finishers from the spring but to turn the tables on them,” said assistant trainer Taku Fukunaga.

Bond Girl: Though the Daiwa Major-sired Bond Girl is a highly consistent runner with three seconds and one third in graded competition, fate and bad luck have taken her down a very different path from what was planned. Aimed for the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies as a 2-year-old, the decision was made to withdraw from the race after she got loose after her final fast work. Tied for earnings to get into the Oka Sho, she didn’t win the draw. Also, in the NHK Mile Cup, she was blocked on the inside and unable to gain ground at the crucial point, resulting in her only performance out of the Top 3. Her two starts since have been longer trips and they’ve brought her back into the Top 3 and once again showcased her excellent late speed. She is set to be paired with Yutaka Take, who’s ridden her last four starts and is tied for most Shuka Sho wins (three). Trainer Takahisa Tezuka has captured five of the seven 3-year-old top-level races, but the Shuka Sho still eludes. Bond Girl is riding a wave that’s brought her a second in the Grade 3 Queen Stakes over 1,800 meters at Sapporo and a third in the Grade 2 Shion Stakes over 2,000 meters at Nakayama. With a bit of luck, she may be able to land her first big win, and wrap up the Classics in style after all.

Christmas Parade: A handsome black filly taking after her sire Kitasan Black, Christmas Parade debuted late last year, aced her first two starts before leaping to the Grade 2 level and posted a fourth in the Flora Stakes over 2,000 meters at Tokyo. She landed her most recent race, the Shion Stakes, with a record time of 1 minute, 56.6 seconds, a time matched by runner-up Mi Anhelo. Miho-based, it’ll be Christmas Parade’s first time at Kyoto, but she has already hauled west. The grass should suit and if she can race close to the front, the inner course should too.

Other fillies of interest are:

The Duramente filly Mi Anhelo missed the win by a neck in the Shion Stakes, but her time matched the winner’s record. A very agile filly, she should have no trouble executing the Kyoto inner course. Mi Anhelo has filled out from the spring and looks to have every chance.
Koganeno Sora, a Gold Ship filly with four wins from eight starts and two more finishes in the Top 3, has raced primarily over 1,800 meters. She shone at Sapporo at the end of July with a win in the Queen Stakes, and though she did enjoy a much lighter allowance (51kg), she performed well against the older fillies and mares. This time, the distance should suit her more than 2,400 meters she ran in the Oaks, where she finished in 12th place. It will be her first time to travel to western Japan, but with good results in Sapporo and Niigata, the trip alone shouldn’t pose a problem.
Sekitoba East, fielded by former jockey Hirofumi Shii, has only missed the board once in her eight starts. Seventh in the Oka Sho, she’s prepped with a fine showing in the Grade 2 Rose Stakes at Chukyo, her first time over 2,000 meters. She took the lead and held it doggedly until about 80 meters out, and was passed only by two. The move to the Kyoto inner course, with its tighter turns and flat stretch will be two pluses in her favor.